One early afternoon, I was doing paperwork inside the government office.
John stood across the executive desk while I looked through the documents he had brought.
Ever since I had taken up the post of governor-general of Enlil Province during this emergency, I made a point of looking over nearly everything at least once. But aside from the standard reports, John, having served me for a long time and knowing me inside out, had certain matters he specifically chose to bring before me.
Today's documents were one such case—judicial matters pertaining to the law.
I reviewed them thoroughly, from start to finish.
"...Disputes among the common folk?"
"Yes, sir."
John nodded, wearing a troubled look.
"For the minor offenses, we can just handle them appropriately on our end."
I nodded.
His phrasing proved that John was actually quite clever, even if he usually concealed it.
The word "appropriate" carried a double meaning here—casual on one hand, but fitting and proper on the other.
What John had essentially meant was:
We'll take care of the trivial cases in a suitable manner.
Being able to wield such subtle nuance showed that John was indeed sharp, a living testament to the idea that people are treasures.
As I pondered this, John kept his grave expression and continued.
"However, what I've brought today is, as you can see... well..."
"Injury resulting in death, robbery-murder... I see. If one were inclined, every single one of these could warrant the ultimate punishment."
"Yes."
John nodded, adding:
"Well, times being what they are, the people are on edge, and everyone's desperate for food, so things happen."
"Indeed. Some of it must have occurred in the heat of the moment."
"So I wasn't quite sure what to do. For us officials, there's that... making an example... what was the phrase again?"
"Making an example of one to warn a hundred?"
"Right, that's the one."
John clapped his hands together.
Having started out as a slave, even now that he had been elevated to a high-ranking official under my wing, John still occasionally showed this lack of formal learning.
However, knowing him as well as I did—and having just been impressed by him moments ago—I saw right through it.
I knew John was either feigning ignorance or deliberately choosing not to acquire that sort of book smarts.
Lacking formal education due to his origins, yet making up for it with practical wisdom—that was John's persona, and I could tell he was consciously leaning into the role.
Just as with my earlier admiration, I decided not to call him out on it.
"I'm all for that. At a time like this, officials ought to be punished with maximum severity. Heck, depending on the crime, wiping out their entire clan wouldn't be going too far. But then, what should we do about the common people?"
"Hmm."
I nodded in understanding.
Injury resulting in death, and robbery-murder. Both carried the potential for the death penalty, but it wasn't guaranteed in every instance.
Naturally, injury resulting in death was the lighter offense; roughly speaking, barely ten percent or less of such cases led to execution. Conversely, robbery-murder was grave, and barely ten percent or less escaped the death penalty.
Two offenses that could sway either way, yet sat on opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of severity.
John had brought them to me to seek my formal sanction.
I figured he intended to establish a precedent for the future.
In my mind, I turned over the phrase John had mentioned: "making an example of one to warn a hundred."
True to the idiom, it meant punishing one person severely to serve as a warning to a hundred others—to the masses.
Presently, we were applying that doctrine strictly to the officials.
Anyone who engaged in corruption or lined their pockets during this crisis had their head severed without mercy.
That was fine. For now, that was the correct course.
Yet, what about the common folk?
At this moment, the commoners were not merely subjects; they were disaster victims.
I understood John's hesitation over whether to apply such harsh object lessons to them.
I also understood the argument that we should, if anything, be more lenient toward the populace.
I let out a faint chuckle.
"What is it, Master?"
"Regarding these individuals, the ultimate punishment will suffice for all of them."
"Huh? You mean off with their heads?"
John looked mildly surprised.
Given the current circumstances and my usual demeanor, he had likely predicted that I would let all the commoners off lightly.
I continued.
"However, all of them will receive a stay of execution. Let's make it... one year."
"A stay of execution on the death penalty... for one year..."
John fell into deep thought.
Since I had attached specific stipulations, there was no way they were devoid of meaning.
He began racking his brain, desperately trying to deduce my intent.
Though John put on the air of being uneducated, he was a man brimming with shrewd intellect.
He put that sharp mind of his into overdrive.
"Does that mean... they're to be released after a year?"
"Half right."
I chuckled softly once more.
"It's only a rough estimate, but in a year's time, I will return to the imperial capital. Let's say I undergo a... 're-enthronement,' moving from governor-general back to Emperor."
"Is that kind of thing even allowed?"
"No, not at all."
I fully understood John's bewilderment.
Even as the words left my mouth, I couldn't help thinking what an absurd phrase it was.
"In the first place, demoting from Emperor to governor-general is already unprecedented."
"True enough."
"Regardless of the phrasing, an enthronement is an enthronement. And with the enthronement of an Emperor, an imperial amnesty can be declared."
Hearing that, realization dawned on John.
His eyes widened, and he murmured in awe:
"At that time... whoever can be released will be granted amnesty... In other words, you sentence them to death, but you don't actually execute them."
"People are treasures, after all."
I nodded firmly.
"A deterrent against our current situation is necessary, but even so, I wish to avoid killing the common folk as much as possible."
"That's brilliant, Master! With this, we can at least keep a lid on things for now."
John's face lit up with relief.
"Has it really gotten to that point?"
"Well, yeah."
John gave a wry smile, looking somewhat uncomfortable.
"There are some folks out there saying Master is too soft on the common people."
"Oh?"
"Personally, for people like that—ah, I mean the ones who get completely insolent and step out of line, of course—I honestly think we could just cut them down where they stand."
John said this with a laugh, but while his lips smiled, his eyes remained dead serious.
How dare they look down on Master... That was undoubtedly what was running through his head.
At his core, John was very much like Leviathan.
A rabid dog, yet a fiercely loyal hound—that was Leviathan.
She would never forgive anyone who showed the slightest disrespect toward her master, flying into a violent rage at the barest hint of insolence.
By comparison, while John shared that exact same nature, he possessed more restraint and understood the art of give-and-take, much like the words he had just spoken.
I addressed him calmly.
"That would take far too much time."
"Eh? No, not necessarily—"
"If we are to pass judgment, we must assemble solid evidence and adhere strictly to proper legal procedures."
"..."
Realization struck John, and he clamped his mouth shut.
That had been my steadfast policy ever since my days as the Royal Minister of Justice.
The law must be upheld with absolute rigor; thus, even when rendering judgment, it had to be supported by concrete evidence and legitimate judicial process.
"Right now, our hands are full dealing with the officials. We cannot afford to divert manpower to the common populace."
"...Understood. In that case, regarding these men—"
John looked down at the roster he had just submitted.
"I'll sentence them appropriately, and make sure to leave a pretext so we can grant them a retrial later."
"That will do."
I let out a long breath.
For the time being, this ought to serve as at least some measure of deterrence.